Helping the Human
by SpookyDJ
Summary: Short drabble where Sans and Papyrus talk in Grillby's before Papyrus goes off to fight the human. (Genocide Spoilers)


**I'm sure this exact thing's been done before, but I don't really care. It was just kinda something fun to do.**

 **This is pretty old, wrote it when I was supposed to be studying for finals. I did alright on finals though, and it was a good break from studying, so I'm glad for it.**

 **Putting this back up because apparently it screwed up when I was putting it up. This site's weirder and pickier than I remember it being, sorry. Fixed for your enjoyment.**

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In case you missed it, this has some spoilers for the Genocide run! Please be careful.

The human (or, whatever that thing was) had certainly been busy. Snowdin was pretty empty by now; everyone in the area had evacuated or was just...gone. Only a few had chosen to remain in town. The two skeleton brothers, of course, were part of that few. They were always on the look-out for humans, so it was no surprise that they hung around, even if the one they got was dangerous. A few monsters chose to stay in their homes and lock their doors rather than leave, hoping the human wouldn't be able to get in. And Grillby, surprisingly, was keeping the pub open until the human got into town.

This worked out well for Sans, who wanted a drink before the human showed up. With the way things were heading and what the reports were saying, he needed it. Even if it was only to escape reality for a little while, he wanted a breather. Grillby, of course, gave him the usual as soon as he sat down: a ketchup bottle. He was as prompt as ever, even a bit more so since Sans was the only customer in the pub right then. Sans thanked him and started drinking. It was all he felt like doing as he started looking towards the end. Maybe he really was lazy after all.

He'd just finished his second or third bottle and was reaching for the next when Papyrus came in. Papyrus wasn't fond of the greasy food or his brother's ketchup drinking habits, but he was there almost as often as Sans. Usually it was just to drag him home. Sometimes, though, he'd sit down for a minute and drink some milk. He claimed it was to keep his bones strong, or something like that. This was one of those times. He sat down next to Sans and Grillby got him a glass of milk as quickly as he'd gotten the ketchup bottle.

The two sat in silence for a while, just drinking and savoring the peace while it lasted. But they couldn't sit there forever, and Papyrus soon pointed it out.

"...WE SHOULD GET GOING SOON, SANS. THE HUMAN WILL SHOW UP ANY MINUTE."

"*paps..." Sans put down his ketchup bottle and looked up at his brother. "*...promise me you won't go back out there, okay?"

"WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT? I HAVE TO FIGHT THE HUMAN, SANS, YOU KNOW THAT. AND I CAN'T FIGHT THE HUMAN IN HERE! WE'D BE IN MORE DEBT THAN WE'RE IN ALREADY!" Papyrus took a swig of milk and shot a grin at Sans.

The usual grin on Sans' face faded at these words; he was barely even smiling. "*this is bigger than getting in the royal guard, or even getting our freedom. please, just listen to me paps." He looked away now, finding it easier to stare into his ketchup instead. "*don't fight the human, okay? just stay here, let them go."

"I CAN'T LET THEM GO, SANS."

"*undyne wouldn't blame you." Sans went on as if Papyrus hadn't spoken, desperation entering his tone. "no one would. *it's more important being safe, being alive, than anything else down here. if you try to stop them, papyrus... *something bad will happen. i know it. just let them-"

"JUST LISTEN TO ME, SANS," Papyrus interrupted. "I CAN'T ABANDON THE HUMAN."

"*abandon...?" Sans frowned now, completely confused. He'd expected Papyrus to talk about fighting the human. How capturing the human would get him into the royal guard, or that defeating the human would protect other monsters. Not some sort of desire to help the human.

"SANS..." the smile from Papyrus' face fell as well as he took another drink of his milk. "DO YOU THINK EVEN THE WORST PERSON CAN CHANGE?"

Sans picked up his ketchup bottle and chugged about half of it, not answering.

"LISTEN TO ME, SANS..." Papyrus put a hand on his shoulder, stopping Sans from drinking even more ketchup. "ANYONE CAN BE A GOOD PERSON, IF THEY JUST TRY. REGARDLESS OF LOVE OR EXP, AS LONG AS THEY TRY, THEY CAN DO IT. I KNOW IT." It was Papyrus' turn to look away, the gears in his head turning. "THE HUMAN...THEY'VE DONE SOME BAD THINGS, I'VE SEEN IT. BUT THAT DOESN'T MEAN IT HAS TO CONTINUE. MAYBE THEY'RE JUST FEELING LOST, OR LONELY, AND THEY NEED SOME HELP TO FIND THE RIGHT PATH. I DON'T CARE IF THEY HATE PUZZLES OR IF THEY WON'T SETTLE OUR ARGUMENTS. IF THEY NEED IT, I WANT TO HELP."

Of course...Sans should've seen this coming before. Paps had a much bigger heart than he did. Figuratively speaking.

"*papyrus...you've seen what they've done to the others, right? the royal guard, all the monsters just living their lives here... *no one's even staying in town anymore." He turned his head, looking at how empty Grillbys was now. It was a surprise that even Grillby had stuck around this long. "*everyone that hasn't faced the human yet already left. and the others, they...

"*I don't want to lose you."

The last few words had accidentally slipped out. They were so quiet he wasn't even sure if his brother had heard him, but he couldn't take them back now. He didn't want to think about it, but... if Papyrus went out there, faced the human, then Sans might never see him again.

Papyrus stared at him, his voice now quiet and thoughtful. He seemed to be thinking the same thing. "...EVERYONE DESERVES A CHANCE, EVEN THE HUMAN. I KNOW WHAT THEY'VE DONE... I SAW SOME OF IT MYSELF. BUT I CAN'T GIVE UP. THEY NEED ME, AND IF I CAN HELP THEM..." A smile creeped back onto his face. "MAYBE THEY'LL SPARE EVERYONE ELSE, TOO. NO ONE ELSE WILL HAVE TO DIE."

"*...alright, paps..." Convincing Papyrus not to go had been pointless from the start. Sans closed his eyes and drank the rest of his ketchup. "*guess i can't change your mind. just be careful, okay? don't let your guard down around the human."

"OF COURSE!" Papyrus jumped up, back to his usual self. "YOU CAN COUNT ON ME, THE GREAT PAPYRUS! EVERYTHING WILL TURN OUT JUST FINE, YOU'LL SEE!" Leaving his milk half-finished, he strode out of Grillby's.

Sans set his ketchup bottle down on the counter and stood up, looking at the door.

"*and paps...make sure you come home, alright?"

A few minutes later, the human entered the pub. They looked around, as if expecting to see someone there. But nobody came.

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"*heya. you've been busy, huh?"

The grin on Sans' face got even bigger when the human gave him no reply. They didn't even need to speak, their actions spoke louder than any words would. This was it...this was the end, one way or another.

"*so, i've got a question for ya."

He closed his eyes and brought a hand up to the dusty red scarf around his neck.

"*do you think even the worst person can change...? that everybody can be a good person, if they just try?"

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 **Hope you guys had a good time**


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